Review of Start Broadband plans

Start Broadband is an Australian-owned and operated broadband provider that claims to pride itself on cutting through the red tape and making the whole internet service process much easier for its customers. The company is locally based, with an entirely Australian customer support team, and supports several charitable initiatives in the local community.

Start Broadband offers both NBN and ADSL bundled plans, both of which can be customised in terms of data, contract length and call inclusions. Start’s NBN plans come with your choice of four different speed tiers, which will influence the amount you pay per month.

What does Start Broadband offer?

NBN Bundles

The process for creating your Start Broadband plan couldn’t be much easier. Simply pick your data allowance, then your download speeds, talk add-ons and finally contract length. Both plans include a VoIP NBN phone as standard with PAYG calls, to which you can add call packages if you so choose.

There are two contracts to choose from: 6 months, which includes a $99 setup fee, or 24 months with no setup fee. To sweeten the deal, Start Broadband will provide you with an optional free modem no matter which contract length you choose. The full plan details are as follows:

Data allowance

50GB

Unlimited

Cost per month

$65

$75

Data speeds

12/1 Mbps (Included)

25/5 Mbps (+$10/month)

50/20 Mbps (+$20/month)

100/40 Mbps (+$30/month)

Talk add-ons

Unlimited national & mobile calls (+$20/month)

$100 of credit to any international destination (+$15/month)

Source: Start Broadband website

ADSL Bundles

Start Broadband’s ADSL bundles are essentially identical to the NBN bundles – the only difference being the older network technology which lacks a choice of download speeds. Pricing for both plans is the same at $65 and $75 per month respectively, and all other add-ons are available on ADSL at the same price.

How does Start Broadband compare to other providers?

Unfortunately, Start Broadband’s NBN plans don’t represent a great value proposition in comparison to most other providers. The entry level unlimited data plan is beaten by most others on price, with the cheapest competing plans coming in at around $30 per month less.

It’s a similar story as prices (and download speed tiers) increase, with the best value probably found on the unlimited plan with Tier 4 NBN speeds (50/20 Mbps), which comes in at $95 per month.

An improved value equation is offered by Start Broadband’s unlimited ADSL bundles, the cheapest of which starts at $75 per month with included line rental. The company’s plans are still beaten on price by several providers, however, including TPG, Exetel and Dodo, among others. That said, Start Broadband’s lack of start-up fees on the longer term contracts makes it more attractive, but if you’re looking for a cheaper prices, you will find them.